Wakefield Community Access TV

01/10/2025

Nomination papers now available!

Wakefield’s Annual Town Election will take place on April 22, 2025. The deadline to register to vote in this election is April 12, 2025. Residents can register online or stop by the Office of the Town Clerk.

Those interested in running for an elected position can obtain their nomination papers at the Office of the Town Clerk in Town Hall, located at 1 Lafayette Street. The last day to file is March 4, 2025; the last day to withdraw or object is March 20, 2025.

The following positions will be on the April ballot:

• Town Council: Three (3) three-year terms
• Town Treasurer: One (1) three-year term
• School Committee: Three (3) three-year terms
• Library Trustee: Three (3) three-year terms
• Planning Board: One (1) five-year term
• Board of Health: One (1) three-year term
• Board of Assessors: One (1) three-year term
• Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Commissioner: Two (2) three-year terms
• Constable: One (1) three-year term

Candidates should familiarize themselves with campaign finance report filing laws (MGL.C55). The first filing date is April 14, 2025; the second is May 2, 2025.

“Each candidate shall keep accurate accounts of his/her contributions and expenditures, and shall file the financial reports as required, and at the same time specified by law with the Town Clerk. Candidates and Treasurers must preserve all detailed accounts, vouchers and receipts for six (6) years from the date of the relevant election. This applies to those elected and those not elected. If a candidate does not receive or expend any money, does not receive any "in kind" contributions, or does not assume any liabilities during the reporting period, the candidate shall still be required to file FORM CPF-M102 or sign the FORM CPF-M102-0 on or before the required filing dates."

Any questions about the election can contact the Office of the Town Clerk at 781-246-6383.

01/09/2025

We're happy to welcome Life Love Cheese to our town, a specialty shop with delicious ambitions to serve our community with high-quality cheeses and pairings. 🧀🧀

Watch our full video - showcase and exclusive interview with owner Kimi Ceridon now:

01/08/2025

WAKEFIELD:

Recycling Collection Delay

Our Recycling partner, Republic Services, is behind in this week’s collection due to high winds, increased volume from the holiday, and frigid temperatures. Missed routes will be collected as soon as possible. If you have the ability to cover your bins in these windy conditions, that is appreciated. Should you take your bins in during the evening, please be sure to place them back out curbside by 7 a.m.

Thanks for your patience. If you have any questions, connect with the Public Works Department at 781-246-6301, ext. 4120.

01/08/2025

Last night's Girls Varsity Basketball game vs. Belmont is now live on our YouTube (WCAT Wakefield), with commentary by Tymothy Brown and camera work by Cavan Hill.

https://youtu.be/Q2hCUWTyjgM

Wakefield Girls Varsity Basketball vs. Belmont - January 7th, 2024Please help support our work by donating your time or money to keep our coverage of import...

01/07/2025

Wakefield School Committee Meeting - January 7th, 2024 | 7:00 p.m.

01/07/2025

We’re thrilled to welcome Junior Girl Scout Troop 83417 to the station tonight, where they will also be attending tonight’s School Committee Meeting!

We’re always happy to welcome the Scouts (or anyone for that matter) and show them the ins-and-outs of local media.

01/06/2025

Beacon Hill Roll Call
Volume 50 - Report No. 1
December 30, 2024 – January 3, 2025
Copyright © 2025 Beacon Hill Roll Call. All Rights Reserved.
THE HOUSE AND SENATE: Last week was full of activity on Beacon Hill.

The Legislature also convened the 2025-2026 session that same day. Much of the day’s activities were ceremonial including the swearing-in of state senators and representatives. The only roll call votes were on the election of a speaker of the House and Senate president.

REP. RON MARIANO RE-ELECTED SPEAKER - The House re-elected Rep. Ron Mariano (D-Quincy) as speaker of the House and Rep. Brad Jones (R-North Reading) as Republican minority leader.
Mariano received the votes of all 132 Democrats who voted. Jones fended off a challenge from Rep. Marc Lombardo (R-Billerica) for the GOP top spot. Jones received 21 votes to Lombardo’s four votes.

Rep. Kate Lipper-Garabedian Voted for Mariano Rep. Donald Wong Voted for Jones
SEN. KAREN SPILKA RE-ELECTED SENATE PRESIDENT - The Senate re-elected Sen. Karen Spilka (D-Ashland) as Senate president and Sen. Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester) as Republican Minority Leader.
Spilka received the votes of 34 of the Senate’s 35 Democrats while all five Republicans voted for Tarr. Sen. John Keenan (D-Quincy) voted “present.”

Sen. Jason Lewis Voted for Spilka
For more information and details on each bill, roll call attendance, and other relevant information, please visit https://wcatwakefield.org .

01/03/2025

Though it's only January, planning for our yearly 4th of July Parade (World-Famous!) has already begun. Please see the information attached if you're interested in supporting this year's parade and keeping Wakefield' favorite tradition alive!

TEXT: Please join us for an evening of comnedy to benefit the Wakefield Independence Day Committee (Parade organizers) and the West Side Social Club 4th of July Committee (Children's events, fireworks and music on the common), collaborating to bring Wakefield another spectacular day long 4th of July celebration!

SATURDAY, January 25th at 7:15p.m.

12/30/2024

Beacon Hill Roll Call
Volume 49 - Report No. 52
December 23-27, 2024
Copyright © 2024 Beacon Hill Roll Call. All Rights Reserved.
THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll calls in the House or Senate last week.

The 2024 legislative session ends on January 1. There was a flurry of activity on Beacon Hill last week as sponsors of dozens of bills attempted to get final approval on the measures from the House and Senate and have the bill sent to Gov. Maura Healey for her signature.

This week’s report includes several key bills that were acted on last week. None of the proposals have yet received final approval from both branches. The ones that do so before January 1 will be sent to Healey for her consideration. Any measures that don’t receive approval in both branches by January 1 are dead and would have to be refiled by their sponsors for consideration in 2025.
PROTECT CATS AND DOGS (S 2908) – The House approved legislation that would prohibit the sale or transfer of any puppies and kittens under eight weeks old. Violators would be fined $100 per animal.

When the animal is more than eight weeks old, the outright ban is lifted and replaced with a section that would prohibit the sale or transfer of any dogs or cats at specified outdoor locations, such as flea markets and roadsides. This prohibition would not apply to the transfer of a dog or cat by, or to, a shelter, animal control or animal rescue; or to the display of a dog or cat as part of a state or county fair exhibition, a 4-H program or similar exhibition or educational program. Violators would be fined $50 per animal for a first offense, $100 for a second offense and $300 for a third and subsequent offenses.

ID FOR LIQUOR PURCHASES (H 4131) – The Senate approved a House-approved bill that would allow alcohol-serving establishments to accept all out-of-state motor vehicle licenses and Global Entry cards issued by the United States Customs and Border Protection office, as valid proof of age and identification.
STUDENT ID CARDS AND SU***DE LINE (S 3001)- The Senate approved a House-approved bill that would require that student ID cards include the 988 Su***de and Crisis Lifeline phone numbers and text message numbers.

OPIOID CRISIS (H 5143) - Gov. Healey signed into law legislation that supporters say would expand non-opioid pain treatments; establish licenses for recovery coaches; support pregnant women and their children who have been exposed to substances; and vastly expand access to opioid-reversal drugs.
INCREASE PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN AND UNDERREPRESENTED GROUPS IN CONSTRUCTION – Gov. Healey signed an Executive Order to increase the participation of women and historically underrepresented groups in construction.

The Executive Order establishes a Diverse and Equitable Construction Workforce Participation Committee to facilitate interagency collaboration on this work. It also identifies and encourages best practices for state agencies to encourage equitable workforce participation in construction, such as utilizing registered apprentices, hiring local businesses and those with a record of hiring women and underrepresented groups, and encouraging contractors to provide supportive services like childcare. The committee will also work with state agencies on data collection to measure the workforce participation of women and underrepresented groups.

For more information and details on each bill, roll call attendance, and other relevant information, please visit https://wcatwakefield.org

12/25/2024

Sometimes people ask what happened to the Wakefield Holiday Stroll. The 2019 Stroll -- and a grand one it was - was pre-pandemic. Enjoy.

ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0uS56oyJYw&ab_channel=WCATWakefield

Highlight video of the 11th Annual Holiday Stroll

12/23/2024

NEW EPISODE: Bare Fitness - Changes That Happen to Women’s Sexual Health as They Age

"Laura Williamson does it again by discussing challenging subject matter with Kim Suvak Warden NP, Founder of The Klinic by KSW Medical Aesthetics. This eye opening conversation will reveal how the skin ages and how those changes can affect intimacy. Give a listen to learn ways to resolve problems that can occur."

Watch now on our channels! Link below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6JZUq-nCtk

12/23/2024

Beacon Hill Roll Call
Volume 49 - Report No. 51
December 16-20, 2024
Copyright © 2024 Beacon Hill Roll Call. All Rights Reserved.

THE HOUSE AND SENATE: There were no roll call votes in the House or Senate last week. Both branches spent most of their time in session listening to the farewell speeches of legislators who will not be returning to the Legislature next year.

The 2023-2024 Legislative session ends on January 1, 2025. At that time, all bills that have not been given final approval by both the House and the Senate and sent to the governor die.

Many of the bills that will die have not been approved by either branch. But there are several measures that were given initial approval with little or no debate by the House. Following initial approval, the proposals automatically go to the House Committee on Bills in Third Reading (BTR), whose job it is to review the bill and check the contents for legal technicalities and proper citations. After the bill is released by BTR, it is considered and debated by the House and then put up for an up or down vote.

Under House Rule 28A, BTR has 45 days to report out the bill to the House floor for debate and a vote.

Beacon Hill Roll Call has found four bills that many months ago were given initial approval by the House with little or no debate and were sent to BTR where they have all lingered much longer than 45 days and will die if not acted upon by January 1.

Beacon Hill Roll Call believes that BTR is violating House rules by keeping the bills in committee and not reporting them out after 45 days as required under House rules. This tactic is often used by BTR and other House committees to bottle a measure up and ultimately defeat it by running out the clock.

Here are the four bills that were all approved by the House more than 45 days ago:

ONLINE CAR SALES (H 351)
FORTUNE TELLERS (H 3893)
INCREASE FINES FOR VIOLATING HANDICAPPED PARKING (H 3261)
ROSA PARKS DAY (H 3075)

For more information and details on each bill, roll call attendance, and other relevant information, please visit https://wcatwakefield.org.

https://wcatwakefield.org/beacon-hill-roll-call-volume-49-report-no-51-december-16-20-2024/

12/21/2024

Enjoying Saturday evening meal at Brothers. No loud music. Friendly staff. Holiday videos current and vintage on the WCAT TV. Brothers is open until 7pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

Closed Christmas Day.

Special church services can be found on the WCATWakefield .org website schedule -- FPCC Messiah Sing Along and Emmanuel Episcopal Blue Christmas and St Joseph Parish Wakefield Christmas Eve.

12/18/2024

https://youtu.be/guIVbgh7yzU

https://www.wakefield.ma.us/veteran-advisory-board

12/17/2024

Hello Neighbors! Watch Leah’s Christmas video to help spread some holiday cheer and share so we can show Leah how loved she is. Last year, Leah and her mother, Elena Proakis Ellis, recorded the Christmas song they had written a couple of years ago. This year they finally put a video to it, and Leah posted it to her YouTube channel. They want to get as many views and shares as they can before Christmas. Please watch and share! Thank you, Leah!

The video is also airing on WCAT TV in the Winter Playlist.

We made this Christmas song. We hope you like it!

12/16/2024

Wakefield Town Council Meeting - December 16th, 2024

12/16/2024

George Rosatone is on a much deserved vacation this week so I, Barbara, get to make a 2022 post - why wait for Thursday -- here's throw-back!

Dominik Chadwick followed Adam Nestle in March 2023. His first gig was the St. Patrick's event at the Town of Wakefield Council on Aging and they all loved him of course.